System and method for enabling user control of online advertising campaigns

ABSTRACT

A system and method for enabling user control over the creation and deployment of banner ad campaigns is disclosed. Through a web-browser interface, an advertiser can control the creation and implementation of an online advertising campaign (e.g., banner ad campaign). In particular, an advertiser can control various advertising campaign functions, including the design of a banner ad, the selection of an advertising channel in which the created banner ad will be displayed, the monitoring of the effectiveness of the banner advertising campaign, and the redesign and redeployment of the banner ad.

[0001] The present application claims priority to ProvisionalApplication No. 60/244,207, filed Oct. 31, 2000, which is incorporatedherein by reference in its entirety.

BACKGROUND

[0002] 1. Field of the Invention

[0003] The present invention relates generally to online advertisingsystems and methods, and more particularly, to systems and methods forenabling user control of the design and deployment of online advertisingcampaigns.

[0004] 2. Discussion of the Related Art

[0005] The attraction of the Internet media to the general population iscausing a significant shift in the traditional channels ofadvertisement. Traditional media such as television, magazines, andnewspapers are quickly losing significant “eye-share” to the growingonline phenomenon. Users now view the world wide web (WWW) as a primarysource of news and general information content. Indeed, many hard-copysubscriptions to magazines and newspapers are being replaced bycomparable subscriptions to the respective online versions.

[0006] Online advertising has therefore played an increasingly prominentrole in the expanding exposure of users to Internet service providers(ISPs) and the WWW. Banner advertisements in particular have risen toprominence as the primary advertising vehicle on the WWW. Banneradvertisements typically appear on a reserved portion (e.g., top orbottom) of a web page that is rendered by a web browser. The particularbanner advertisement on a web page enables a user to reach theadvertiser's web site by “clicking-through” the banner ad. Theclick-through rate is one of the primary vehicles for determiningadvertising fees.

[0007] Banner ad design and placement typically involves a third party.With respect to the design phase, a third-party designer will play arole similar to an advertising agency that designs commercials or printadvertisements. Taking, as input, the goals and general objectives of apotential advertiser, the third-party designer generates a banner addesign that it believes will generate the most interest among theviewing public. After the banner ad design has been completed andapproved by the advertiser, the banner ad is then delivered to thebanner ad serving agency that will deliver the banner ad to its networkof affiliates.

[0008] The effectiveness of a banner ad campaign can be measured invarious ways. For example, the effectiveness of the banner ad campaigncan be evaluated based upon a click-through rate. Regardless of themeasure of advertising effectiveness used by the advertiser and adserving agency, a redesign of the banner ad campaign may be required atsome point.

[0009] In this process, the banner ad campaign is halted and the thirdparty ad designer reviews the content and style of the banner ad andmakes whatever changes it considers appropriate. Once the advertiserapproves the modifications, the revised banner ad is then submitted tothe banner ad serving agency for redeployment. This banner ad deploymentand redeployment process incurs significant expense and delays. Thedelays are particularly problematic when considering the overall goal ofmaintaining and generating the maximal level of impact over a shortperiod of time.

[0010] As is well known, the viewing Internet public can quickly bedesensitized to a banner ad campaign that has previously been seen.Accordingly, what is needed is an efficient mechanism for deploying andredeploying banner ads on an online network. In particular, what isneeded is a mechanism that enables an advertiser to exhibit greatercontrol over the banner ad design and placement process. In this manner,an advertiser can ensure that the advertising campaign will not sufferfrom unnecessary delays that are incurred through the intervention ofthird parties.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0011] The present invention addresses the drawbacks of conventional addelivery environments by providing a system and method that enable anadvertiser to control the creation and implementation of an onlineadvertising campaign. This control is effected through the interactionby an advertiser with a user interface that is rendered by a userworkstation. In a preferred embodiment, the user interface isweb-browser based and is generated in accordance with user-interface webpage data that is transmitted by a server associated with an ad servingentity.

[0012] The user interface enables an advertiser to control variousadvertising campaign functions, including the creation of an online ad,the selection of an advertising channel in which the created online adwill be displayed, the monitoring of the effectiveness of the onlineadvertising campaign, and the redesign and redeployment of the onlinead.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0013] The foregoing and other features and advantages of the inventionwill be apparent from the following, more particular description of apreferred embodiment of the invention, as illustrated in theaccompanying drawings.

[0014]FIG. 1 illustrates a generic banner ad delivery network

[0015] FIGS. 2A-2C illustrate a collection of scenes in a banner ad.

[0016]FIGS. 3A and 3B illustrate the transitions between states in theoperation of a banner ad.

[0017]FIG. 4 illustrates a user interface for providing an ad campaignlisting.

[0018]FIG. 5 illustrates a user interface for providing a banner adoverview.

[0019]FIG. 6 illustrates a user interface for creating a loading scene.

[0020]FIG. 7 illustrates a user interface for creating a hover scene.

[0021]FIG. 8 illustrates a user interface for providing a catalogueslide overview.

[0022]FIGS. 9A and 9B illustrate a user interface for creating apurchasable slide.

[0023]FIG. 10 illustrates a product order/info pop-up window.

[0024]FIG. 11 illustrates a user interface for specifying a scene changeeffect between slides in a banner ad.

[0025]FIG. 12 illustrates a user interface for selecting channels for abanner ad campaign.

[0026]FIG. 13 illustrates a channel cart user interface.

[0027]FIG. 14 is a flowchart of a banner ad yield management process.

[0028]FIG. 15 illustrates a viral marketing mechanism within a bannerad.

[0029] FIGS. 16, 17A-17C, and 18-21 illustrate user interfaces for thecreation and delivery of online ads.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0030] A preferred embodiment of the invention is discussed in detailbelow. While specific implementations are discussed, it should beunderstood that this is done for illustration purposes only. A personskilled in the relevant art will recognize that other components andconfigurations may be used without parting from the spirit and scope ofthe invention.

[0031] Banner advertisements represent one of the primary vehicles forweb site operators to extract revenue based upon the traffic at theirown web site. In the early stages of online advertising on the Internet,advertising revenue was based simply upon the number of banner adimpressions. As the number of banner ad impressions were proportional tothe number of users that would visit a web site, web site operatorssought to rapidly acquire and create a community of users that wouldfrequent their web site. In this environment, the sheer weight of a website's community of users formed the basis of a significant advertisingrevenue stream.

[0032] As Internet users have become increasingly familiar with theconcept of banner ads, they have also become increasingly unresponsive.Banner ads have become an expected element of the Internet experienceand are often ignored. For this reason, banner ad designers havecontinued to innovate to try and attract the attention of the Internetpublic. For example, while early banner ads were largely comprised ofsingle image graphic files (e.g., GIF files), more recent banner adshave utilized a greater degree of animation using animated GIF files.All of these innovations have simply sought to attract the attention ofa user that is inclined to ignore that area of the rendered web page. Ageneral limitation of banner ads that use GIF images is that the userwho responds to the banner ad by clicking on it will leave the web sitethe user was visiting.

[0033] In the evolution of the banner ad, greater emphasis has beenplaced on the content of the banner ad and the correspondingresponsiveness of the viewing audience. Increasingly, the responsivenessof the audience dictates the advertising revenue to be generated. Ratherthan being based upon an impression basis, the advertising revenue canbe based upon the click-through rate or any other corresponding measureof user interactivity with the banner ad.

[0034] The present invention is primarily directed to mechanisms thatenable advertisers to maximize the performance of their onlineadvertising campaign. One feature of the present invention is theprovision of a user-controlled online ad creation and deploymentmechanism that enables an advertiser to place user-interactive onlineads on an ad-serving network. In one embodiment, the user-interactiveonline ads enable an advertiser to provide full e-commerce functionalitywithin the online ad itself. In the following description, a specificexample of online advertising (i.e., banner advertising) is discussed.It should be recognized that the concepts described below are notrestricted to banner ads but are extensible to a generic form of onlineadvertising. Prior to discussing the features of the present invention,a brief description of a generic banner ad delivery network is firstprovided.

[0035]FIG. 1 illustrates a generic banner ad delivery network 100.Banner ad delivery network 100 comprises affiliate server 110, thirdparty ad server 120, advertiser server 130, and user workstation 140.Generally, an affiliate is an entity that permits third partyadvertisements to be displayed on their web sites. When user workstation140, through a web-browser interface, downloads a web page fromaffiliate server 110, an advertisement provided by the third party adserver 120 is overlaid onto the display of the affiliate's web page. Itshould be noted that the advertisement can be provided directly by thirdparty ad server 120 or can be provided by another ad server (not shown)that receives a banner ad request that has been redirected by thirdparty ad server 120. In the following description, the term third partyad server is used to refer to any source of advertising content, whetheror not that source of advertising content was the original recipient ofan advertising content request. After the banner ad is displayed on areserved portion of the affiliate's web page, the user can connect toadvertiser server 130 by clicking through or otherwise selecting theadvertisement (e.g., image, icon, etc.).

[0036] More particularly, the operation of banner ad delivery network100 begins when user workstation 140 contacts affiliate server 110 bygenerating a hypertext transfer protocol (HTTP) message to get theinformation for the desired web page. Affiliate server 110 then respondsby transmitting web page information, such as a compilation of hypertextmarkup language (HTML) code, JavaScript, Java applets, graphic imagefiles (e.g., GIF, JPEG), etc., that is used by user workstation 140 inrendering the requested web page in the user's web browser interface.

[0037] As part of this compilation of web page information, affiliateserver 110 also sends a tag (e.g., applet tag) that identifies thesource of the banner ad. Using the received tag, user workstation 140can then send a message to third party ad server 120 to request thebanner ad to be inserted into the web page. As noted above, this requestmay be redirected to yet another third party ad server. As part of thisbanner ad request, user workstation 140 can also send information, suchas information that identifies the web site, location in the web site,location in the web page where the advertisement is to be displayed,user identification, etc., that third party ad server 120 can use todetermine which banner ad to send to user workstation 140.

[0038] Upon receiving the request by user workstation 140, third partyad server 120 determines which advertisement to provide to userworkstation 140. Once identified, the advertisement is transmitted touser workstation 140 and overlaid onto the web page that is beenrendered by user workstation 140 in the web browser interface.

[0039] As noted, one of the drawbacks of conventional ad deliveryenvironments is the delays and expense that are incurred in the designand redesign of a banner ad that is ready to be delivered by third partyad server 120 to a user workstation 140. This design process involvesextensive use of third parties that are not immediately responsive tothe advertiser. This lack of control is a significant detriment to theadvertiser in the creation of an effective advertising campaign.

[0040] The present invention addresses this issue by providing a systemand method that enables an advertiser to directly control all phases ofthe creation and implementation of a banner advertising campaign. Thiscontrol is effected through the interaction by an advertiser with a userinterface that is rendered by user workstation 140. In a preferredembodiment, the user interface is web-browser based and is generated inaccordance with user-interface web page data (e.g., HTML, JavaScript,Java applets, etc.) that is transmitted by a server associated with theentity that is responsible for delivering banner ads to requesting userworkstations 140.

[0041] As will be described in detail below, this user interface enablesan advertiser to directly control various advertising campaignfunctions, including the design of a banner ad, the selection of anadvertising channel in which the created banner ad will be displayed,the monitoring of the effectiveness of the banner advertising campaign,and the redesign and redeployment of the banner ad.

[0042] In the example user interface described below, an advertiser iscapable of designing a banner ad that is dynamic in its appearance andinteractivity. As such, the banner ads that are capable of being createdby the user interface are superior to conventional static banner adsthat comprise one or more image graphic files (e.g., GIFs).

[0043] In one embodiment, the banner ads comprise a plurality of scenesincluding a loading scene, a catalogue menu scene, and an optional hoverscene. The loading scene is the first scene that is displayed in thebanner ad space and is used to ensure that a message is displayed whilethe banner ad is being loaded by user workstation 140. An example of aloading scene 210 is illustrated in FIG. 2A.

[0044] The catalogue menu scene sequentially displays a plurality ofslides that are defined by the advertiser. An example of a cataloguemenu scene 220 is illustrated in FIG. 2B. The catalogue menu scene 220includes logo display area 222 and slide display area 224. Logo displayarea 222 includes a company logo, control buttons (Play, Order/Info,GoTo, Prev, Next), and a mysterious icon 226. The function of thecontrol buttons and mysterious icon 226 will be described in greaterdetail below. Slide display area 224 represents a ticker area thatsequentially scrolls through a catalogue of graphic images.

[0045] The catalogue of graphic images can be used in a variety ofadvertising contexts. In one example, the catalogue of graphic imagescan be used to convey a message, such as a political campaign theme,where each catalogue item displays one element of a candidate's overallpolitical position. In another example, the catalogue of graphic imagescan be used to advertise a catalogue of products that are for sale. Inthis example, each graphic image can display a picture of the productalong with the product's name, ID, price, quantity, and description.This product catalogue scenario is illustrated in the slide display area224 of FIG. 2B.

[0046] The optional hover scene is displayed in the banner ad space whena user passes a mouse through the banner ad space. An example of a hoverscene 230 is illustrated in FIG. 2C. Hover scene 230 can be used tosignal to a user that the banner ad is an interactive banner ad. As thebanner ad can be designed to complete transactions solely within thebanner ad and corresponding pop-up windows, the user can be alerted thatinteraction with the banner ad will not cause them to leave thecurrently visited web site. This feature is especially useful inencouraging banner ad interaction by users that are predisposed toignoring banner ads because of the expected consequence of beinghyper-linked away from their current web site location.

[0047]FIGS. 3A and 3B further illustrate the interplay between theloading scene, catalogue menu scene, and the hover scene. FIG. 3Aillustrates the scenario where the optional hover scene has beenselected by the advertiser. In the state transition diagram of FIG. 3A,the banner ad process begins in loading state 310. In loading state 310,the loading scene is displayed in the banner ad space while the bannerad is being loaded by user workstation 140.

[0048] After the banner ad has been loaded by user workstation 140, thebanner ad process transitions into ticker state 320. In ticker state320, an attractor loop is initiated which cycles through a plurality ofslides. As noted, these slides are displayed in a slide display areasuch as that illustrated as display area 224 in catalogue menu scene 220of FIG. 2B. The attractor loop serves to display a series of messages,advertisements, etc., that would create a measure of interest in theuser viewing the web page in which the banner ad is being displayed.

[0049] Conventional banner ads typically comprise one or more staticgraphic images. Their purpose is simply to increase a user's interest toa sufficient degree such that the user will click on the hyperlinkedbanner ad. Clicking on the banner ad will then take the user to theadvertiser's web site.

[0050] In the present invention, banner ads can be created that areinteractive. In this environment, clicking at a point within the adspace will not necessarily transport a user to another web site. Asusers are conditioned to expect to be transported to another web siteupon a mouse click, they will not necessarily attempt to interact withthe banner ad. Accordingly, a hover scene can be used to signal to theuser that the banner ad is responsive to the user's actions. Morespecifically, the java applet can be designed to detect movement of auser's mouse into the banner ad area of the screen and respond bydisplaying the hover scene in the banner ad space.

[0051] An example of a hover scene 230 is illustrated in FIG. 2C. Hoverscene 230 is designed to inform the viewing user that interaction withthe banner ad will not result in a click-through to an advertiser's website. Indeed, the appearance of the hover scene upon the movement of theuser's mouse into the banner ad space will alert the user that thebanner ad is responsive to the user's actions.

[0052] With reference to FIG. 3A, the movement of the mouse into theticker (i.e., into the banner ad space) will cause a state transitionfrom ticker state 320 to hover state 330. While in hover state 330, theuser can choose not to interact with banner ad and move the mouse out ofthe ticker (or banner ad space). This detected action by the Java appletwill cause a state transition back to ticker state 320. In other words,if the user decides not to interact with the banner ad, the banner adwill return to displaying the attractor loop.

[0053] If the user chooses to interact with the banner ad by clicking inthe banner ad space or keeps the mouse in the banner ad space for apredetermined period of time, then a state transition occurs from hoverstate 330 to manual state 340. In this transition, the catalogue menuscene changes such that the attractor loop can be manually controlled.For example, consider catalogue menu scene 220. In ticker state 320,catalogue menu scene 220 can be designed to display only the logo inlogo display area 222, while the attractor loop of slides is beingdisplayed in slide display area 224. In manual state 340, however, logodisplay area 222 can be designed to display a set of buttons (e.g.,Play, Order/Info, GoTo, Prev, and Next) in addition to the logo. Thesebuttons can be used to control the display of slides in amanually-controlled attractor loop. User interactivity with the buttonscan be encouraged by highlighting the various buttons on mouse over.

[0054] Manual control of the attractor loop enables a user to parsethrough the catalogue of slides. In a sales context, the user canidentify a particular item of interest that is described in a particularslide, gain additional information, and choose whether to purchase thepictured item. If the user discontinues his interaction with the bannerad, then a transition from manual state 340 to ticker state 320 occurs.In this state transition, the banner ad resumes the display of theattractor loop.

[0055]FIG. 3B illustrates a state transition diagram in an alternativeimplementation where the optional hover scene is not selected. In thisscenario, the transition between loading state 310 and ticker state 320is identical to the analogous state transition in FIG. 3A. Unlike FIG.3A, however, any movement of the mouse into the banner ad space causes astate transition from ticker state 320 to manual state 340. If the userterminates his interaction with the banner ad while in manual mode, thena transition from manual state 340 back to ticker state 320 occurs.

[0056] As described, a banner ad that operates in accordance with thestate transition diagrams of FIGS. 3A and 3B are feature rich ascompared to conventional static banner ads. In a conventional banner addesign process, the inclusion of additional features only serves todelay the introduction and launch of the prospective banner ad campaign.

[0057] It is a feature of the present invention that an entire banner adcampaign can be designed, monitored, and redesigned by any individual orentity that desires to advertise on the Internet. This element ofcontrol represents a significant advantage over conventional banner addesign and deployment processes.

[0058] This control is effected through an individual's or entity'sinteraction with a user interface that enables the individual or entityto efficiently create and deploy a banner ad campaign. In a preferredembodiment, the user interface is rendered in a web browser environment.The user interface is rendered based upon a compilation of HTML,JavaScript, Java applets, etc. that are received from a server.

[0059]FIG. 4 illustrates an initial ad catalogue listing screen 400 thatcan be used to define a banner ad campaign. In ad catalogue listingscreen 400, a user is presented with a listing of one or more banner adcampaigns that have been at least partially defined. As such, thelisting of ad campaigns can include banner ad campaigns in variousstages of the lifecycle. For example, the listing can include banner addesigns that have been fully designed and currently deployed, banner adcampaigns that are in the process of being redesigned, banner adcampaigns that are currently being designed, etc.

[0060] The listing of ad campaigns enables a user to use existing adcampaign information in the creation of a new ad campaign. In thismanner, the banner ad design cycle is greatly reduced. For example, auser can choose to modify a banner ad campaign that was run a few monthsago by simply updating one or more slides in the attractor loop. As soonas those modifications are made, the banner ad can be run on thepredefined banner advertising channel. The process of designing a banneradvertising channel is described in greater detail below.

[0061] As illustrated in FIG. 4, ad catalogue listing screen 400presents a user interface that enables a user to create an ad campaignbased upon an ad campaign that is at least partially defined or tocreate an ad campaign using a blank template. More specifically, adcatalogue listing screen 400 presents a table having a plurality of rows402A-402B, wherein each row is associated with an individual banner adcampaign. Within each row 402A-402B, the user is presented with optionsthat enable the user to play the banner ad (i.e., review all elements ofthe banner ad as it will be viewed on a website), use the banner adcampaign as a template, move the banner ad campaign to an ad dumpster,and to view summary information of the banner ad campaign. Buttons 410and 420 enable the user to initiate the banner ad creation process. Asnoted, the user can create a banner ad using a previously created bannerad as a template or can create a banner ad using a blank template.

[0062] A template-based banner ad creation process enables a user toquickly incorporate a variety of user-selectable features into a bannerad. These user-selectable features enable an advertiser to bypassconventional third-party design processes that inevitably slow down thedeployment of the banner ad campaign. A variety of user-selectablefeatures can be implemented in a banner-ad-design user interface. Thevariety of features can be expanded or contracted depending upon theperceived needs of advertisers that seek to obtain a presence on theInternet. An embodiment incorporating a particular set ofuser-selectable features is described. This set of user-selectablefeatures is not intended to limit the potential applications of thebanner-ad-design system of the present invention.

[0063] An embodiment of a banner-ad-design user interface is nowdescribed with reference to FIGS. 5-11. FIG. 5 illustrates a banner adoverview screen 500. Banner ad overview screen 500 enables a user tospecify some of the basic characteristics of the banner ad. After a userenters an Ad Name and an Ad Description in fields 502 and 504,respectively, the user can specify a choice of Theme (e.g., sports,nature, technology, space, underwater, etc.) using scrollable listelement 506. Using a theme gives the banner ad consistency and style.The theme selection can be designed to govern a banner ad's background,button style, font, colors, etc.

[0064] Next, a user is presented with choices 508 regarding a format forthe banner ad. The banner ad format option enables a user to specify arelative layout of a logo display area 222 and a slide display area 224.For example, choosing the first option places the logo on the left-handside of the banner ad.

[0065] The logo to be displayed in logo display area 222 can be uploadedor created. A logo can be uploaded from a file on the user'sworkstation. To facilitate this process, the user can enter the filename in text field 510 or browse through the file system of the user'sworkstation using browse button 512. If a logo file was previouslyuploaded, it will be displayed as the current logo (i.e., sample.gif).Alternatively, the user can create a logo from scratch by specifying atext string along with font, font size, style, and color options in auser interface (not shown).

[0066] Having specified some of the basic characteristics of the bannerad, the user is presented with buttons 521-524. Button 521 enables theuser to return to ad catalogue listing screen 400, button 522 enablesthe user to view the banner ad that has been created thus far, button523 enables the user to play the entire ad, and button 524 enables theuser to proceed to the next screen in the banner ad campaign creationprocess.

[0067] In a preferred embodiment, playback by the user of all or part ofthe banner ad is based upon a pre-compiled applet that supports all ofthe banner ad features that can be selected through the user interface.As the pre-compiled applet supports all of the features, it may besomewhat large. This pre-compiled applet is in contrast to the appletthat is deployed to user workstations 140 that will be viewing the ad.The deployment ad is a fast-loading version that is customized andcompiled with the user-selected parameters.

[0068] The next screen in the banner ad campaign creation process isloading scene creation screen 600. As illustrated in FIG. 6, screen 600enables a user to specify a text string in text field 602 that will bedisplayed in the loading scene. The text string is specified along withfont, font size, style, and color options. Screen 600 also enables auser to specify a background color of the loading scene.

[0069] Loading scene creation screen 600 also includes buttons 611-614.Button 611 enables the user to return to banner ad overview screen 500,button 612 enables the user to view the loading scene that has beencreated thus far, button 613 enables the user to play the entire ad, andbutton 614 enables the user to proceed to the next screen in the bannerad campaign creation process.

[0070] After the loading scene is created, the user can then create anoptional hover scene. The hover scene creation screen 700 is illustratedin FIG. 7. The hover scene can be uploaded or created. If the hoverscene is to be uploaded, the user can enter the file name in text field702 or browse through the file system of the user's workstation usingbrowse button 704. If a hover scene was previously uploaded, it will bedisplayed as the current hover scene. Alternatively, the user can createa logo from scratch by specifying a text string in text field 706 alongwith font, font size, style, and color options.

[0071] Hover scene creation screen 700 also includes buttons 711-714.Button 711 enables the user to return to loading scene creation screen600, button 712 enables the user to view the hover scene that has beencreated thus far, button 713 enables the user to play the entire ad, andbutton 714 enables the user to proceed to the next screen in the bannerad campaign creation process.

[0072] The next screen in the banner ad campaign creation is directed tothe creation of a catalogue of slides that will form the attractor loop.The catalogue of slides represents the heart of the advertising contentwithin the banner ad. The catalogue of slides can be created using slidecatalogue screen 800 of FIG. 8.

[0073] In catalogue screen 800, the user is presented with a listing ofone or more slides 802A-802D that have been at least partially defined.For each slide 802A-802D listed, the user can choose to include theslide in the banner ad by checking the include box, change the order inwhich the slides are displayed by clicking on each reorder box, edit aslide by clicking on the edit button, and delete a slide by clicking onthe delete button for that slide. To create a new slide, the user canselect either purchasable button 804, downloadable button 806, andmessage button 808. Purchasable slides advertise an item that is madeavailable for purchase, downloadable slides enable an object to bedownloaded or played within the banner ad, and message slides displaymessages within the banner ad. Purchasable, downloadable, and messageslides represent three examples of slides that can be created for theattractor loop. Other types of slides can be created for the attractorloop as would be apparent. To illustrate the process of creating aslide, a purchasable item slide example is examined. The process ofcreating downloadable or message slides will become apparent from thefollowing description of a forms-based purchasable item slide creationprocess.

[0074]FIGS. 9A and 9B illustrate portions 900A, 900B of a purchasableslide creation screen that enables a user to create a purchasable slide.In purchasable slide creation screen portion 900A, the user firstspecifies a slide name in text field 902. The purchasable slide can beuploaded or created. If the purchasable slide is to be uploaded, theuser can enter the file name in text field 904 or browse through thefile system of the user's workstation using browse button 906. If apurchasable slide was previously uploaded, it will be displayed as thecurrent purchasable slide.

[0075] Alternatively, the user can create a purchasable slide fromscratch by specifying information that applies to the purchasable item.More specifically, the user can specify an item name in text field 908,an item ID in text field 910, an item price in text field 912, an itemquantity in text field 914, and an item description in text box 916. Foreach of these items of information, the user can further specify whetherthe text information should be included in the purchasable item slide.The user is also instructed to provide an item image. The item image canbe uploaded by specifying the file name in text field 918 or browsethrough the file system of the user's workstation using browse button920. If an item image was previously uploaded, it will be displayed asthe current item image.

[0076] As further illustrated in purchasable slide creation screenportion 900A, the user is also prompted to provide a backgroundgraphical image (e.g., GIF). The slide background graphics can beuploaded or created. If the purchasable slide background is to beuploaded, the user can enter the file name in text field 922 or browsethrough the file system of the user's workstation using browse button924. If a purchasable slide background was previously uploaded, it willbe displayed as the current purchasable slide background. Alternatively,the user can specify a background color.

[0077] Having specified the descriptive pieces of information for thepurchasable item, the user can now specify a layout of the purchasableitem slide. The layout format options are selectable from the choicesillustrated in purchasable slide creation screen portion 900B. Theselayouts enable a user to quickly select the relative locations of theitem image, item name, item ID, item price, item quantity, and itemdescription.

[0078] As described, the forms-based design of scenes and slides enablesthe user to specify text and graphics as parameters in the scenecreation interface. Using a GIF template, the system can automaticallygenerate a GIF using the supplied text strings and GIFs. The GIFtemplate specifies a number of fields. Each field has an extent (inpixels), outside of which, data will not appear. Each field may be a GIFor text. GIF fields take a GIF and can either clip or scale it to thespecified extent. Text fields take a text string, and render accordingto field options such as font style, font size (and whether to autosizeor not), foreground color, background color, justification, etc. Increating the final GIF, the system overlays the content of the GIF andtext fields onto a background GIF or color. The final GIF can then bedisplayed as all or part of a scene in the banner ad.

[0079] In addition to the description of the item on the purchasableitem slide, the user can also include one or more interactive buttonsonto the purchasable item slide. These interactive button can bedesigned to launch a variety of functions such as Go To URL, E-Mail,Play, launch Pop-Up window, etc. Each of these options can be providedin an interactive button menu 926. In a preferred embodiment, one of thebuttons is designated as the default button such that a click anywherewithin the purchasable item slide will launch the default action.

[0080] Pop-Up windows can be used to provide additional informationregarding the item displayed in the purchasable item slide. Theadditional information can include a detailed description along with oneor more graphical images. Pop-Up windows can also be defined using aforms-based user interface (not shown). In a preferred embodiment, thePop-Up windows are HTML based.

[0081] After the purchasable item slide has been defined, the user canselect one of buttons 931-934. Button 931 enables the user to return toslide catalogue screen 800, button 932 enables the user to view theslide that has been created thus far, button 933 enables the user toplay the entire ad, and button 934 enables the user to indicate that theslide is finished and should be saved.

[0082] After the user returns to slide catalogue screen 800, the newlycreated slide will be included as a row in the slide listing table. Theuser can then reorder the slides in the listing or choose to createadditional slides. After the user has completed his interaction withslide catalogue screen 800, the user can select one of buttons 811-813.Button 813 enables the user to return to hover scene creation screen700, button 812 enables the user to play the entire ad, and button 813enables the user to proceed with the banner ad campaign creationprocess.

[0083] Each of the slides that have been created are to be displayed ina slide display area (e.g., slide display area 224 of FIG. 2B). Theslide display area 224 is complemented by a logo display area thatdisplays, when in manual mode, a set of interactive buttons such asOrder/Info, GoTo, Prev, and Next. The Prev and Next buttons can be usedto navigate through the slide catalogue. The GoTo button enables theuser to click-through to the advertiser's site. The Order/Info buttoncalls up a PopUp window that enables a user to gain additionalinformation as well as order the item displayed in the slide displayarea.

[0084] Pop-Up windows are particularly relevant to purchasable itemslides. An example of a PopUp order/info page is illustrated in FIG. 10.PopUp order/info page 1000 includes a header section 1010 that mayinclude a company's logo as well as other created text and graphics.PopUp order/info page also includes product information as representedby Headline text field 1020, product GIF 1030, product description field1040, and price field 1050. Finally, PopUp order/info page includes Buybutton 1060 that enables the user to purchase the item. As would beappreciated by one of ordinary skill in the relevant art, the purchasingprocess can be based upon an electronic shopping cart and other orderform windows that enable the system to retrieve demographic andfinancial information from the user.

[0085] PopUp order/info page 1000 can be generated using the same typeof forms-based user interface as described above. This forms-based userinterface enables the advertiser to design and deploy, in an efficientmanner, a banner ad that can offer all elements of electronic commerce.In a preferred embodiment, Pop-Up order/info page 1000 is HTML based.

[0086] It should be noted that if a downloadable slide is displayed inthe slide display area, then further interactive buttons such asDownload and Play can be defined. In that scenario, the Download buttoncalls a download panel for a defined URL and the Play button calls amedia player plug-in for a defined URL.

[0087] After the catalogue of slides has been defined by the user usingcatalogue screen 800, the user can then configure the attractor loop.More specifically, the user can specify the effect by which thetransition between slides is handled. FIG. 11 illustrates an attractorloop configuration screen 1100. The three options illustrated aredissolve, smooth scroll, and random scroll. For each effect, the usercan specify a Time to Remain (in seconds) that a slide will remainvisible on the screen and a Rate of Effect that specifies the speed atwhich the effect occurs. For the smooth scroll and random effectoptions, the user can also select the direction of the effect'smovement.

[0088] Attractor loop configuration screen 1100 also includes buttons1111-1113. Button 1111 enables the user to return to catalogue screen800, button 1112 enables the user to play the entire ad, and button 1114enables the user to proceed to the next screen in the banner ad campaigncreation process. At this point the user has specified all of the scenesthat are to appear in the banner ad. The next step is to identify anadvertising channel in which the banner ad will be run. Generally, anadvertising channel is a collection of websites that have a common themeor topic (e.g., sports or pets). To enhance the effectiveness of theadvertising campaign, advertisers are able to specify one or morechannels in which the advertisement should be run. The individualadvertising channels can be predefined or can be created by theadvertiser.

[0089]FIG. 12 illustrates an embodiment of an advertising channelselection screen 1200 that enables an advertiser to select one or morepredefined channels for use in an advertising campaign. The predefinedchannels can be hierarchically organized such that an advertiser canselect the breadth of representation within a particular theme or topic.Consider the example hierarchy illustrated in FIG. 12. The hierarchy ofchannels includes the broader channel categories of pets and sports.Each of the broader channel categories includes subcategories thatfurther break down the theme or topic. For example, the channel categoryof sports includes further subchannels directed to baseball, football,and golf. It should further be noted that the broad categories of petsand sports can be part of even broader channel categories such asanimals and entertainment, respectively.

[0090] The advertising channel selection screen 1200 enables anadvertiser to explore the list of channels by expanding and contractingthe levels in the hierarchy. Each particular channel can be furtherexamined by clicking on the hyperlinked channel list elements. Aselection by an advertiser of a hyperlinked channel list element willreveal the list of individual websites that are identified in quantityby the hierarchical list.

[0091] After the advertiser has investigated the list of channels, theadvertiser can select individual predefined channels for inclusion inhis advertising campaign. As noted above, the advertiser can also createa customized channel. This creation process is enabled through theselection of button 1212. Based on a user interface screen (not shown),the advertiser can modify a predefined channel or can customize achannel by specifying the individual websites. After the channel hasbeen created, the user is returned to channel selection screen 1200. Theselection process can then be completed through the designation of thelist of channels that are to be included in the channel cart, and theselection of button 1211.

[0092] The channel cart view is a mechanism for specifying the detailedparameters of the advertising campaign. The channel cart operates in amanner similar to a conventional electronic shopping cart. An embodimentof a channel cart view screen 1300 is illustrated in FIG. 13. In thechannel cart view screen 1300, the list of selected channels isdisplayed in a table. For each channel, the advertiser can specify theunits of advertising that he wishes to purchase. In channel cart viewscreen 1300, the advertiser is given a choice of purchasing advertisingon a per-impression, per-click, or per-post basis. As would beappreciated by one of ordinary skill in the relevant art, various otherunits of advertising can be purchased.

[0093] To illustrate this process, consider the channel “Sites AboutGolf.” For this particular channel, the user first specifies the unit ofadvertising using scrollable list 1302. After the unit of advertisinghas been selected, the advertiser can then designate a quantity in field1304. For example, if “Impressions” has been selected as the unit ofadvertising, the advertiser can specify a quantity such as 5,000, whileif “Clicks” has been selected as the unit of advertising, the advertisercan specify a quantity such as 100. After a quantity has been specifiedfor the channel, a cost will be determined and displayed in field 1306.Following this process for each of the selected channels, the advertisercan specify the operating parameters of the entire advertising campaign.If the total cost appearing in field 1310 is agreeable to theadvertiser, the advertiser can then proceed to the check out screenusing check out button 1311. As would be appreciated by one of ordinaryskill in the relevant art, the check out process can use standardelectronic commerce forms and payment systems.

[0094] It should be noted that the embodiment represented by channelcart view screen 1300 represents only a single level of channelgranularity with respect to the purchasing process. In otherembodiments, the determination of the amount of advertising can bespecified for an arbitrary level of the channel hierarchy. For example,if a general channel about sports has been selected, the advertiser mayspecify the individual quantities of advertisement for each of thesubchannels rather than specifying the quantity of advertisement for thesports channel as a whole. Moreover, the advertiser may wish to specifythe quantities of advertisement for individual websites that areincluded within a particular channel. This feature enables an advertiserto target the advertising in a specifically-defined manner.

[0095] After an advertising campaign has been specified and paid for,the advertiser will receive, from the ad serving entity, a list ofunique URLs (one list for each channel). These URLs are provided to thevarious affiliate websites included within the channel list. Theindividual affiliate sites can then use the URL to go the ad servingentity's site for registration. Upon completion of the registrationprocess, the affiliate web site will then receive the tag (e.g., applettag) to be inserted within the web page data to be transmitted torequesting user workstations 140.

[0096] Having specified the design of the banner ad and one or moreadvertising channels in which the designed banner ad is to be run, thebanner ad can be submitted for deployment. As a final step of the designprocess, the banner ad content can be checked to ensure that the contentis not offensive in nature. After this manual or automated contentreview process, the banner ad parameters selected by the user can beused to prepare a deliverable banner ad.

[0097] In a preferred embodiment, the deliverable banner ad iscustomized and compiled as a Java applet using the user-selected bannerad parameters. It should be noted that the deliverable banner ad can begenerated in any format (e.g., Macromedia Flash ad) that is readable bya web browser. The embodiment of a banner ad as a Java applet isadvantageous because when the banner ad Java applet gets loaded on theweb page, it can periodically, or at specific times (e.g., mouseevents), send information from the ad or events occurring in the bannerad back to the server via a virtual link. The information can then bestored in a database (not shown). This information can be used to trackgeneral and specific user interaction with the banner ad, therebyproviding a means for assessing banner ad performance on the network.

[0098] It should be noted that not all browser systems and associatednetworks are Java enabled. Accordingly, the user-selected banner adparameters are also used to create both a GIF version, a MacromediaFlash ad, and a JavaScript/Dynamic HTML version of the banner ad. Inthis manner, the ad delivery system of the present invention can servebanner ads that can be viewed by any user workstation 140.

[0099] It is a feature of the present invention that the automateddesign and configuration of a banner ad leads to a significantly reducedtime for actual deployment of the banner ad. Where third partiesparticipate in the design and re-design process, banner ads may not beable to capture a quickly-moving market opportunity.

[0100] After the banner ad campaign is deployed, the advertiser canmonitor the performance of the banner ad by reviewing the statistics ofthe advertising campaign. An example of a basic set of statistics for anadvertising campaign is illustrated in Table 1. The statistics of Table1 include the number of Total Impressions, Java Impressions, GIFImpressions, Total Clicks, Java Clicks, GIF Clicks, Total Posts, JavaPosts, and GIF Posts. In this example, it is assumed that two forms ofthe banner ad are being served, i.e., Java applet and GIF ads. For eachbanner ad type, the number of impressions, click-throughs, and posts arecharted. TABLE 1 Total Java GIF Total Java GIF Total Java GIF DateImpressions Impressions Impressions Clicks Clicks Clicks Posts PostsPosts 2/1/99 40432 29515 10917 1706 1564 142 264 250 14 2/2/99 3481226716 8096 1521 1416 105 238 227 11 2/3/99 40470 29929 10541 1723 1586137 168 154 14 2/4/99 42421 31480 10941 1811 1668 142 281 267 14 2/5/9940122 29574 10448 1705 1567 137 265 251 14 2/6/99 36547 27582 8965 15781462 117 246 234 12 2/7/99 37528 29251 8277 1658 1550 108 259 248 11Total 1,064,053 813,621 250,432 46,378 43,122 3,256 7,230 6,900 330

[0101] After reviewing the set of statistics such as those listed inTable 1, the advertiser can then assess the effectiveness of theadvertising campaign. If the response has thus far been lackluster, theadvertiser can decide whether to halt and/or redesign the advertisingcampaign. If this course of action is desired, the advertiser can reviewand edit the content of the banner ad campaign from ad catalogue listingscreen 400. From ad catalogue listing screen 400, the advertiser canredesign the content of the ad or adjust the channels in which thebanner ad is being displayed. This redesign process can be efficientlyperformed and ensures that the banner ad can be redeployed withoutexperiencing significant downtime.

[0102] It should be noted that the redesign process can also beinitiated by the advertiser based upon detailed statistics beyond thebasic set of statistics illustrated in Table 1. Additional statisticssuch as the time of the mouse in the banner ad, types of interactionwith the banner ad, etc., can be generated by the Java applet banner ad.These detailed statistics can give the advertiser insight into portionsof the banner ad to which users are not responding. These non-responsiveareas are prime candidates for a redesign.

[0103] As thus described, adjustments to a banner ad campaign can beinitiated by the advertiser. It is a further feature of the presentinvention that adjustments to a banner ad campaign can also be initiatedby the banner ad delivery system itself. More particularly, the bannerad delivery system can monitor the banner ad campaign and modify thedelivery schedule of the banner ad to effect a form of yield management.The yield management process is illustrated by the flowchart of FIG. 14.

[0104] To illustrate the yield management process, consider a scenariowhere an advertiser has designed an ad and selected an advertisingchannel of four web sites A-D in which to display the ad. Using thechannel cart view screen 1300, assume that the advertiser has purchaseda hundred clicks/day for the selected advertising channel for a periodof X days.

[0105] As a first step in the yield management process, the ad deliverysystem first determines, at step 1402, a delivery ratio for web sitesA-D in the selected advertising channel. This delivery ratio genericallyrepresents an implicit or explicit control over the relative number oftarget impressions that the banner ad will receive for each of web sitesA-D in the selected advertising channel. As can be appreciated, thisdelivery ratio may not be uniform over the web sites in the selectedadvertising channel. This non-uniformity in delivery ratio can resultfrom the non-equal values that can be placed on the various advertisingforums (i.e., web site, web page, web page location, etc.) in which thebanner ad will appear. Indeed, the non-equal values of the advertisingforums will typically be used in determining a weighted-cost ofadvertising in a particular channel/subchannel.

[0106] In the present example where the advertiser has purchased onehundred clicks to be generated from the four web sites A-D in theselected channel, assume that the ad delivery system has set up animpressions target in accordance with Table 2. TABLE 2 AdvertisingChannel X # of Impressions/Day Web Site A 600 Web Site B 400 Web Site C300 Web Site D 200 Total 1500 

[0107] As illustrated in Table 2, web site A is scheduled to receive 600Impressions/Day, web site B is scheduled to receive 400 Impressions/Day,web site C is scheduled to receive 300 Impressions/Day, and web site Dis scheduled to receive 200 Impressions/Day. After this deliveryschedule has been produced in accordance with the initially identifieddelivery ratio, the ad delivery system can then proceed to serve thebanner ad to the four web sites A-D in the selected channel.

[0108] These banner ad impressions eventually produce the desiredadvertising effect of enticing the viewer to interact with the bannerad. At step 1404, the ad delivery system is operative to monitor theuser interaction with the banner ad. Based on these statistics, the addelivery system can then determine, at step 1406, whether the previouslydetermined delivery ratio should be adjusted. This scenario can occurwhen the impressions for a given web site are producing adisproportionately large or small response rate as compared to anexpected response rate. In one embodiment, this determination process isbased on a comparison of the ratio of clicks to the number ofimpressions across the web sites in the channel. Clearly, othermechanisms for determining the relative proportionality of responserates can be used without departing from the scope of the presentinvention.

[0109] Based on the examination of response rates by the individual websites A-D in the channel, the ad delivery system can then determinewhether the delivery ratio should be adjusted. If the response rates arenot unexpected, then the original delivery ratio is left intact and thead delivery system continues to monitor user response rates.

[0110] If, for example, web site B is generating a disproportionatelysmall response rate while web site D is generating a disproportionatelylarge response rate, then an adjustment of the delivery ratio may berequired. If a delivery ratio adjustment is required, then the yieldmanagement process proceeds to step 1408. At step 1408, the ad deliverysystem determines the delivery ratio adjustments that are required. Inthe above example, the target number of impressions on web site B maysimply be reduced in favor of an increased number of impressions on website D. After the delivery ratio is adjusted, the ad delivery systemcontinues to monitor user response rates.

[0111] It should be noted that this adjustment process may not be basedon a zero-sum gain amongst the total target of impressions for the websites in the selected channel. This could result due to ad trafficconsiderations that relate to agreements between the affiliates and thead serving entity. Notwithstanding this consideration, the ad deliverysystem can modify the ratio to a degree such that the totalclick/impression ratio for the channel is improved. Improvement of thetotal click/impression ratio maximizes the effectiveness of limitedresources and thereby enhances the value of the ad serving entity'soperation.

[0112] It should further be noted that the adjustment of the deliveryratio can be based upon various levels of granularity. In the examplediscussed above, the delivery ratio adjustment was initially determinedbased upon delivery to the web sites as a whole. Further detailedstatistics can also be used to adjust the delivery ratios to theindividual web sites. For example, the ad delivery system may determinebased upon received statistics that a particular banner ad generates agreater response rate when (1) placed in a particular page on a website, (2) placed on a particular portion of a web page, (3) placed on aparticular web site at a particular period of time during a day, etc.Any type of detailed performance statistic can be used to adjust thedelivery ratio for the web sites in the channel. To effect thesemodifications, the delivery ratios themselves may require aspecification at a finer granularity.

[0113] The yield management process as thus described enables an addelivery system to maximize its ad serving efforts. This maximizationprocess can be cumulatively applied to conventional targeted ad servingefforts that seek to define the area of proper ad placement. Theseconventional techniques merely define a set of pre-delivery rules thatgovern the ad serving process. These pre-delivery rules are simplyestimates of where the ad is likely to receive the best user response.The yield management process of the present invention, on the otherhand, further refines the pre-delivery rules by using real-timeempirical information to determine where the banner ad will be mosteffectively displayed.

[0114] The efficiency of the ad delivery system is an importantcomponent in producing paid-for results at a minimal cost. In effect,the efficiency of the ad delivery system increases the ad deliverysystem's total $/impression ratio. This $/impression ratio isparticularly important when the ad delivery system is at or near itstotal throughput capacity.

[0115] It is a further feature of the present invention that a viralmarketing mechanism can be used to rapidly expand the reach and utilityof the ad serving network. This viral marketing campaign can be effectedby including a small, unobtrusive branded viral icon on each banner adserved. An example of this unobtrusive icon is illustrated in the bannerad of FIG. 15. As illustrated, the banner ad includes within logodisplay area 222, a mysterious icon 226 in the logo display area. In oneembodiment, mysterious icon 226 is animated as a seductive andmysterious portion of the logo display area 222 that invites the user tomove his mouse over mysterious icon 226.

[0116] If the user's mouse is moved over mysterious icon 226, a popupmenu 1500 appears that gives the user the options of becoming anadvertiser, becoming an affiliate, becoming a member of the ad servingnetwork, or emailing the banner ad to a friend. Through this viralmarketing campaign, the ad network can be expanded across multipledimensions. More specifically, the ad serving network is expanded across(1) the set of advertisers that are placing banner ads on the network,and (2) the set of affiliates and ad network members that are willing todisplay banner ads on their web site. The final option of emailing thebanner ad to a friend further enables the prospective viral marketing tobe passed on to users that may not have come in contact with the bannerads served by that particular ad serving entity.

[0117] This multi-dimensional viral marketing campaign represents apowerful improvement over conventional one-dimensional viral marketingcampaigns. For example, consider the one-dimensional viral marketingcampaign of Microsoft's Hotmail™ product. In this viral marketingcampaign, each email composed by a Hotmail™ subscriber includes thefollowing message “Get Your Private, Free Email athttp://www.hotmail.com.” This email trailer includes a hyperlink thatenables a recipient of the email message to go to the Hotmail™ web siteto set up their own free email account.

[0118] While the Hotmail™ viral marketing campaign has provedsuccessful, it can only expand the list of subscribers to the system.This one-dimensional viral campaign is distinguishable from themulti-dimensional viral campaign of the present invention. In the viralmarketing campaign of the present invention, not only are subscribers(i.e., advertisers) being added to the system, but the network itself(i.e., affiliates and network members) is also being expanded.Accordingly, through the viral campaign of the present invention, boththe use and capacity of the ad delivery network are expanded. Thismulti-dimensional viral marketing campaign is therefore effective inramping up the use and capacity of an ad serving network in a shortperiod of time.

[0119] As described in the embodiment above, the user interfacesillustrated in FIGS. 4-8, 9A, 9B, and 11-13 provided a user withfine-grained controls for creating and deploying an online ad campaign.In addition to specifying advertising content, the user could also usethe fine-grained controls to specify detailed display and formatcharacteristics of the online ad. For example, the user could define thefont, font style, point size, and color of elements of advertisingcontent within each scene or slide. In effect, the user would provide atop-to-bottom design of the entire online ad.

[0120] Once the user completed the initial design of the online ad, theuser could play the online ad to determine whether it met the user'soriginal advertising intent. Modification to the online ad was effectedthrough an editing process that reworked the original display and formatcharacteristics of the online ad.

[0121] In a second embodiment of the present invention, the ad creationprocess has been simplified to increase the effectiveness of the systemin creating a suitable online ad. In the first embodiment, users wereprovided with an interface that enabled the user to specify detailedonline ad characteristics. For example, users were called upon tospecify font, size, style, and color characteristics of individualtextual elements. Additionally, users were called upon to specify anordering of slides and types of transitions between those slides. Whilethese interfaces provided significant cost and time-to-market advantagesrelative to the use of online ad designers, the interfaces of the firstembodiment did not maximize its usability as a turnkey solution forgenerating online advertising.

[0122] In the second embodiment, the user directs the creation of theonline ad without having to specify the detailed characteristics of theonline ad. In this process, users are not sequentially prompted withdetailed ad specification options. Rather, users are first called uponto specify a generalized ad directive that embodies the user's generaladvertising intent. By divining the user's general advertising intent,the ad creation process of the present invention can automaticallycreate a set of candidate ads that are believed to express the intentand desired focus of the user.

[0123] It is therefore a feature of the present invention that theusability of the online ad generation process is improved. In the secondembodiment, users are not called upon to provide the bulk of the onlinead design. Rather, the ad generation system creates the online ads underthe general direction of the user. This automatic online ad creationprocess enhances the user's ability to realize an effective advertisingcampaign without delay. Significantly, the transfer of the primaryresponsibility for online ad design away from the user ensures thatseamless, professional-grade online ads can be produced.

[0124] As noted, the user need not play an active role in the actualdetailed design of the ads. Rather, the user's role is focused upon thecontent and objective of the ad. In a sense, the user can be envisionedas an ad director rather than an ad designer. Illustration of this adcreation process is now provided with reference to FIGS. 16, 17A-17C,and 18-21, which illustrate a sequence of user-interface screens.

[0125]FIG. 16 illustrates an embodiment of an ad objective screen 1600.Ad objective screen 1600 represents the beginning of the ad creationprocess. Here, the user is called upon to define the general objectiveof the online ad. In the illustrated embodiment, the user can indicate adesired ad purpose through the selection from a set of ad objectivesusing radio buttons 1602, 1604, 1606. Radio buttons 1602, 1604, 1606 arerespectively associated with the following ad types: “Promote aProduct,” “Promote a Service,” and “Drive Traffic and Brand Awareness.”As would be appreciated, further ad objectives can also be definedbeyond the examples provided in ad objective screen 1600. Additionally,it should be noted that the indication of a desired ad purpose can beaccomplished in a variety of ways other than the use of radio buttons.

[0126] The “Promote a Product” ad type represents a typical salesoriented ad campaign. The general objective for this ad type would be todisplay details (e.g., product photo or price information) of aparticular product that is being offered for sale. The focus of thistype of ad would be on the product itself. The “Promote a Service” adtype is similar to the “Promote a Product” ad type. Instead of focusingon an offered product, the ad is focused on an offered service.

[0127] Unlike the previous ad types, the “Drive Traffic and BrandAwareness” ad type is focused on a company, rather than a product orservice. This type of advertising is part of a general informationdissemination campaign and is not focused on the consummation of animmediate sale.

[0128] As can be appreciated, the different focus of each of these adtypes suggests that a different online ad design should be used. Almostby definition, all advertising campaigns are not created equal.Accordingly, variations in theme would dictate variations in the designof the online ad.

[0129] It is a feature of the present invention that the specificationof an ad objective by the user can be used to drive the ad creationprocess. In one embodiment, the specification of an ad objective (ortype) can be used to identify one or more specific forms oftype-dependent ad data that should be retrieved from the user. Forexample, the selection of a “Promote a Product” ad type would suggestthat a product sales price should be retrieved, while the selection of a“Drive Traffic and Brand Awareness” ad type would not require a salesprice. The request and retrieval of type-dependent ad data ensures thatthe online ad design would be tailored to the original ad objective.

[0130] It should be noted, however, that in one embodiment, a singlesuperset of ad data can be requested from the user regardless of theselected ad objective. In this scenario, the ad generation system wouldselect the appropriate fields from the superset of ad data that shouldbe emphasized in the online ad for the selected ad objective. Ingeneral, the targeted nature of the ad design process is a product ofthe principle that a single ad specification and creation process wouldnot yield optimal results when applied across diverse ad objectives.

[0131] Selection from diverse ad objectives is enabled through radiobuttons 1602, 1604, 1606 in ad objective screen 1600. These radiobuttons are associated with predefined ad objectives. It should be notedthat the ad objectives illustrated in ad objective screen 1600 are notintended to be exhaustive. Indeed, there is no limit to the number ofadditional ad objective categories or sub-categories that can be definedand made available to the user. Their subsequent effect on the adcreation process will become apparent from the following description.

[0132] Upon selection of an ad objective, the user is presented with anad data entry screen. FIG. 17A illustrates ad data entry screen 1710,which is presented to the user upon selection of ad objective “Promote aService” using radio button 1604. Ad data entry screen 1710 includestext entry fields 1711-1716. Text entry fields 1711-1716 enable a userto specify textual content for the service offering that is the subjectof the online ad. More specifically, the user can provide textual datafor the following categories: “teaser,” “teaser follow-up,” “servicedetails,” “additional info,” “call to action,” and “company name.”Control 1717 is used to select image data to be used for a “companylogo.” The provision of the requested text and image data enables thecreation of an online ad that is targeted to the selected ad objective.In particular, each of these pieces of requested information is known tohave a particular relevance to the selected ad objective and cantherefore be used accordingly. For example, consider the selection of anad type in the category (Sales) and the sub-category (Price Sensitive).If a price figure is included in the ad data entry screen for that adtype, then the role of the price would be known to play a critical rolein generating user interest. This knowledge would dictate that the pricefigure should be displayed often and prominently throughout thegenerated online ad. As would be appreciated, this strategy would not beapplied in a Non-Price Sensitive sub-category where the brand name mayplay a greater role in generating user interest.

[0133]FIGS. 17B and 17C illustrate alternative ad data entry screens1720 and 1730, respectively. Ad data entry screen 1720 is produced whenthe user selects the “Promote a Product” ad type, while ad data entryscreen 1730 is produced when the user selects the “Drive Traffic andBrand Awareness” ad type.

[0134] As noted, the various ad objectives may require the specificationof different types of ad data. This difference is illustrated in thecomparison of ad data entry screens 1710 and 1720. Ad data entry screens1710 and 1720 are associated with “Promote a Product” and Promote aService” ad types, respectively. These two ad objectives are salesoriented and therefore similar in many respects. However, one adobjective is focused on a product while the other is focused on aservice. For this reason, ad data entry screen 1720 includes anadditional control 1724 that enables the user to select image data to beused in describing the product being advertised.

[0135] Further differences are illustrated in the comparison of ad dataentry screens 1710 and 1730. Here, ad data entry screen 1710 includestext entry fields 1713, 1714 for “service details” and “additionalinfo.” Ad data entry screen 1730, on the other hand, includes text entryfield 1733 for a “tagline.” While text entry fields 1713 and 1714 areused to describe details of a service offering, “tagline” entry field1733 is used to provide a short, easily remembered phrase that the userwants associated with a product or service. As can be appreciated, theassociation of these textual elements to the overall ad objective cangreatly influence the placement and use of the textual data in an onlinead.

[0136] In general, the similarity between two ad objectives will dictatethe amount of similarity between the items of ad data that are requestedfrom the user. In the above examples, the ad objectives are satisfiedlargely through the provision of textual data along with one or morepieces of image data. In other examples, a particular ad objective couldrely almost exclusively on image data, or could rely on dynamicallychanging data that exists at another website. In general, the various adobjectives could dictate not only the types of ad data that are requiredbut also the use of the ad data within the ad design.

[0137] For example, a particular ad objective directed to the display ofa live auction in an online ad may dictate that the user should specifya URL in the ad data entry screen. This URL would identify a locationwhere dynamic data can be retrieved. In one example, this dynamic datacan exist in HTML or extensible markup language (XML) format that is tobe parsed to identify the auction data. The retrieved auction data canthen be included within the online ad that is generated.

[0138] After entry of the ad data using an ad data entry screen 1710,1720, 1730, the user is then presented with click action screen 1800,illustrated in FIG. 18. Click action screen 1800 enables a user toidentify the specific course of action that occurs when a user clicks onthe online ad. The most common online ad behavior is the click-through.To support this scenario, the user would provide the relevant URL intext entry field 1810. This URL would enable the user to visit thewebsite of the advertiser's choice. In one embodiment, a new web-browserwindow is opened with the specified URL along with an advertisement forthe ad network operator. In this embodiment, the original website screenthat included the displayed ad would not be disturbed.

[0139] As can be appreciated, additional types of “click action” can bedefined. In one example, sales-oriented ad objectives would include aclick action screen that enabled the advertiser to specify an onlinecoupon for a discount on the advertised service or offering. Upon aclick onto the online ad, the online coupon would be displayed in apop-up window that would enable the user to print the online coupon. Inone embodiment, the click action screen would prompt the user for thecontent of the coupon (e.g., value of the coupon). This content datawould be used to generate an online coupon that was consistent in styleand presentation with the generated online ad.

[0140] In another example, a click action screen would enable the userto create a text entry form. This text entry form would prompt users toenter personal information (e.g., name, address, etc.) that is to beprovided to the advertiser. In one embodiment, the text entry form wouldbe automatically generated through the identification of conventionalpersonal information entry fields. As can be appreciated, this saleslead information can be delivered to the advertiser individually uponreceipt or as a group after having been collected during a particularperiod of time.

[0141] After the appropriate click action has been specified, the useris then presented with ad preview screen 1900. Ad preview screen 1900displays a plurality of ads that have been generated in accordance withthe ad objective and the provided ad data. Each of the displayed ads isbased on a template that is associated with the selected ad objective.The various ad templates are populated with the ad data that is providedby the user.

[0142] In one embodiment, the selection of the particular ad templateswould be dependent upon the input provided by the user. In other words,particular ad templates can be selected based upon consideration of theidentified ad objective and the ad data that has been provided by theuser. For example, consider again the selection of an ad type in thecategory (Sales) and the sub-category (Price Sensitive), wherein theprice figure is provided by the user in the ad data entry screen. Inthis situation, the ad template that is designed to display the pricefigure often and prominently would be selected over an ad template thatwas designed to prominently display the brand name.

[0143] In another embodiment, programmatic logic within an ad templatecould be used to produce variations in the generated online ad. Forexample, the programmatic logic could be used to determine what type ofad data to use and how to emphasize that ad data within the online ad.This would enable the particular ad template to generate ads that weretargeted to a known ad objective. In general, these decisions could bebased upon consideration of the identified ad objective and the ad datathat has been provided by the user. As would be appreciated, these twoembodiments could also be used in combination to provide a responsive adgeneration framework.

[0144] The collection of ad templates is generally designed to accountfor the spectrum of ad design options that would be appropriate for theparticular ad objective. For example, the collection of ad templates canbe used to specify various combinations of font styles, backgroundgraphics, scene/slide layouts, scene/slide transitions, etc. Through thedisplay of the plurality of preview ads, the user can simply survey thevarious options and select the ad that is most suitable for the intendedadvertising campaign.

[0145] In one embodiment, the collection of ad templates or ads to beproduced is selected based upon ad performance data. More specifically,the collection of ad templates or ads to be produced can be selectedbased upon the known relative success in generating significant userresponse. This feedback process would ensure that the user is presentedwith a set of candidate online ads that are most likely to succeed inthe marketplace.

[0146] It is a feature of the present invention that the user need notspecify the entire set of specific design parameters for the online ad.As described in the first embodiment, the user is called upon to specifythe font, size, style, and color characteristics of individual textualelements and the types of transitions between slides. These low-leveldesign specifications would hinder the user in creating a seamless,professional-grade online ad.

[0147] As the user does not typically possess any expertise in graphicad design, the user in the second embodiment is called upon to simplydirect the creation of the ad. No particular expertise in graphic addesign is thereby required. A user can specify an ad objective and thecorresponding core content without having to consider the host of designparameters that are necessary to create a single viewable ad. By relyingon a collection of predefined ad templates that are associated with thead objectives, ad creation time is reduced while the quality of theresulting online ad is increased. These factors serve to greatlyincrease user satisfaction in the generated online ad and thecorresponding advertising results.

[0148] As noted, the ad templates are populated with user-provided addata. In one embodiment, the ad templates can be further populated basedupon the intended focus of the ad. For example, if the user specifies anad objective category (or sub-category) that relates to a particularindustry or season of the year, then the ad template can include data(e.g., graphics related to the holiday season) that is related to the adobjective. As would be appreciated by one of ordinary skill in therelevant art, the specific elements of the ad template that areselectively imported are implementation dependent.

[0149] In one embodiment, the online ads are created as Macromedia™Flash ads. An authoring environment of Macromedia™ Flash is used tocreate Macromedia™ Generator templates. When run, the Macromedia™Generator templates would incorporate content from a data source. Aswould be appreciated, the principles of the present invention can alsobe used in generating online ads in different formats (e.g., animatedGIFs, JavaScript, Java, etc.).

[0150] After the user has selected an ad using the associated radiobutton (e.g., radio button 1910), the user is then presented with adconfirmation screen 2000. Ad confirmation screen 2000 enables the userto review the ad for accuracy. For example, the user can click on the adto ensure that the click action is operating in accordance with theuser's direction. If the user determines that the ad is notsatisfactory, then the user can proceed back through the ad creationprocess using the “back” button.

[0151] If the user determines that the ad is satisfactory, then the usercan then proceed to schedule the ad using the “schedule ad” button. Adscheduling can be performed in accordance with the process describedabove. Once scheduled, the online ad can be launched on the ad-servingnetwork.

[0152] As described, the online ad creation process of the secondembodiment enables users to realize an effective online ad without beinginvolved in the specifics and complexity of the ad design process. Thesimplicity of the ad creation process serves to reduce the ad creationtime. Significantly, the simplification of the ad creation process alsoserves to increase the quality of the generated online ad. With thepresent invention, users can generate seamless, professional-gradeonline advertisement at a fraction of the cost of employing professionalgraphic online ad designers. Indeed, the appearance of the generatedonline ad would suggest that it was built by a professional ad agency.In accordance with the principles of the present invention, the userneed not have any expertise in web advertising design to create aneffective online ad campaign.

[0153] While the invention has been described in detail and withreference to specific embodiments thereof, it will be apparent to oneskilled in the art that various changes and modifications can be madetherein without departing from the spirit and scope thereof. Thus, it isintended that the present invention cover the modifications andvariations of this invention provided they come within the scope of theappended claims and their equivalents.

What is claimed is:
 1. An online advertising method, comprising: (a)receiving first information from a user, said first information beingused to identify an objective of an advertising campaign; (b) generatingone or more candidate online ads using said objective and advertisingcontent that is received from said user; and (d) transmitting secondinformation to a user computer, said second information enabling saiduser computer to display said one or more candidate online ads.
 2. Theonline advertising method of claim 1, further comprising the step ofquerying said user for a set of advertising content, said set ofadvertising content being identified based at least in part upon saididentified objective of said advertising campaign.
 3. The onlineadvertising method of claim 1, wherein said generating includesselecting advertising content from a set of advertising content that isreceived from said user.
 4. The online advertising method of claim 1,wherein said generating includes identifying one or more templates thatare associated with said identified objective.
 5. The online advertisingmethod of claim 1, wherein said generating includes generating aplurality of candidate online ads.
 6. The online advertising method ofclaim 1, further comprising receiving third information from said user,said third information being used to identify a selection of a candidateonline ad.
 7. The online advertising method of claim 1, furthercomprising determining, in accordance with said identified objective,which portions of said advertising content to emphasize in said onlinead.
 8. The online advertising method of claim 1, wherein said online adis a banner ad.
 9. An online advertising system, comprising: aprocessing system that enables a rendering of a user interface at a usercomputer, said user interface being configured to enable a user todefine advertising information that includes advertising content and anindication of an advertising objective, wherein said user interface isfurther configured to display one or more candidate online ads thatincludes at least part of said advertising content, wherein saidadvertising content is displayed in said one or more candidate onlineads in accordance with an advertising scheme that is defined at least inpart by said processing system to satisfy said advertising objective.10. The online advertising system of claim 9, wherein said processingsystem generates a plurality of candidate online ads.
 11. The onlineadvertising system of claim 10, wherein said user interface enables auser to select from said plurality of candidate online ads.
 12. Theonline advertising system of claim 9, wherein said processing systemgenerates online ads using ad templates.
 13. The online advertisingsystem of claim 12, wherein said processing system generates online adsusing Macromedia Generator templates.
 14. The online advertising systemof claim 12, wherein said online ad is a banner ad.
 15. The onlineadvertising system of claim 9, wherein said processing system queriessaid user for a set of advertising content, said set of advertisingcontent being identified based at least in part upon said identifiedobjective of said advertising campaign.
 16. The online advertisingsystem of claim 9, wherein said processing system selects advertisingcontent from a set of advertising content that is received from saiduser.
 17. The online advertising system of claim 9, wherein saidprocessing system identifies one or more templates that are associatedwith said identified purpose.
 18. The online advertising system of claim9, wherein said processing system generates a plurality of candidateonline ads.
 19. The online advertising system of claim 9, wherein saidprocessing system receives a selection of a candidate online ad fromsaid user.
 20. The online advertising system of claim 9, wherein saidprocessing system determines, in accordance with said identifiedobjective, which portions of said advertising content to emphasize insaid online ad.